The Aloof Lord's Mysterious Wife-Chapter 528: Unexpected Discovery of Chu Yan’s Background, Hanging by a Thread!

Chapter 528: Unexpected Discovery of Chu Yan’s Background, Hanging by a Thread!

The chief eunuch thought to himself, "Since the emperor has spoken, how can I, a mere servant, refuse?" However, knowing that the second young master of the Chu family was always generous, he figured that even half would still be a considerable amount.

So, he agreed at once, "Your Majesty, how could you say that? If you ask, even if I only get a tenth, I’d still be happy."

"I can’t just let you take only a tenth..."

While saying this, Emperor Muwu had already started pulling things out of the pouch--silver, gold, jade, rubies, and fine fabrics were removed one by one.

The chief eunuch’s eyes widened as he swallowed hard, "Heavens... so many valuables!"

The silver and gold were nothing to mention, but the jade and gemstones were worth at least two to three thousand taels. Although he worked closely with the emperor, there were still many who treated him with respect on the surface but cursed him behind his back as a "damned eunuch." Few were as generous as the second young master of the Chu family.

Tears welled up in his eyes, and he felt deeply moved. With half of this wealth, his retirement would be well taken care of.

Who would have thought that Emperor Muwu, standing next to him, would suddenly frown, "Is Chu Erlang having financial troubles? He gave you so little."

"Huh?" The chief eunuch was momentarily confused, "Is this... is this really too little?"

"Of course, it’s too little. Don’t you remember? When Beihan got married, Chu Erlang gave them a whole manor worth tens of thousands of taels!" Emperor Muwu said, clearly displeased.

The chief eunuch pondered for a moment and replied, "But... Lord Xie and I are worlds apart in status, not to mention they’ve been close friends since childhood. The bond between them is naturally different."

"But you serve me directly!" Emperor Muwu retorted, "By giving you such a meager gift, he’s disrespecting both you and me."

Clearly agitated, Emperor Muwu flung his sleeves and sat back down on the throne, his face clouded, deep in thought.

The chief eunuch didn’t mind the amount but now worried that Emperor Muwu’s anger would cause trouble for the Chu family. His heart began to race.

"Your Majesty, I’m sure the second young master didn’t mean any disrespect. He has always held you in the highest regard."

"Hmph, he says he respects me, but look how little he gave. Even after splitting it, there’s hardly anything left for me." Emperor Muwu scoffed.

Without hesitation, the chief eunuch said, "Your Majesty, as I mentioned earlier, I only need a tenth. The second young master..."

Before he could finish, Emperor Muwu interrupted, "Old Wang, you said it yourself!"

Without missing a beat, the emperor quickly divided the treasures, leaving the chief eunuch with a pitifully small share. He then commanded his men to carry the remaining ninety percent into his private treasury.

Emperor Muwu beamed, his earlier anger now completely gone, leaving the chief eunuch in a daze as he realized what had just happened.

"Your Majesty..." The chief eunuch couldn’t help but laugh bitterly, "If you wanted it, you could have just said so. There was no need to trick me out of my share."

Emperor Muwu, without a hint of shame, replied, "If I’d asked directly, would you have given it?"

In truth, being the emperor wasn’t easy. Rewarding this person and that person had already drained half of his private funds.

The chief eunuch was left speechless.

Emperor Muwu sighed, "In the end, Chu Erlang really didn’t give enough."

Meanwhile, in the Chu family ancestral hall...

Though there was no cold wind, and two small braziers had been brought in by the servants, Chu Shuo still felt a chill. He sneezed, rubbing his nose, thinking how strange it was--someone must be cursing him.

At that moment, footsteps sounded outside.

Chu Shuo assumed it was Madam Qian coming, so he pretended to be even weaker, saying, "Auntie, this ancestral hall is too cold... please plead with Father for me."

To his surprise, it was Qi Mu who entered.

She grabbed Chu Shuo by the collar and pulled him up, "You coward! If you want to leave, just go. Why make your aunt plead for you?"

"Miss Qi!" Chu Shuo exclaimed as she released him, "How could I dare? You don’t know how strict my father is. If I leave, he’ll break my legs."

Qi Mu considered for a moment, "Is your father really that harsh? He doesn’t seem like it."

"People are not always what they seem," Chu Shuo muttered, though he didn’t mention that he was the only one receiving such "special treatment." Suddenly, he became suspicious, "Miss Qi, our ancestral hall doesn’t allow outsiders. And since Sixth Sister has returned, why aren’t you arm-wrestling her?"

Looking her up and down, he added in surprise, "Wait, could it be? Have you already given up without even competing?!"

Qi Mu shot him a glare, "Nonsense! I saw a man in black enter your main hall. The Ninth Princess even set up a barrier to block all sounds. I came to warn you."

"A man in black?" Chu Shuo stood up abruptly.

He’d been so happy to see his fifth brother return, thinking the Heart-Uniting Enchanting Bug had been lifted. Who could have guessed Qi Hong had followed him back?

When Qi Mu had rescued the emperor earlier, she hadn’t known Qi Hong’s identity, only seeing him as a hooded figure in black.

Hearing her now, Chu Shuo realized who it was.

"I need to go!" he declared. No way would he let Qi Hong take his fifth brother away!

No matter how much silver Qi Hong demanded, Chu Shuo was willing to pay.

"But didn’t you just say that leaving the ancestral hall would get your legs broken?" Qi Mu reminded him. "Without inner strength, it’d take a long time to heal broken legs."

"No worries. I can still get married with broken legs!" Chu Shuo was already rifling through his pouch, looking for a talisman. "Yanyan will understand that I’m risking everything for my brother and won’t blame me."

He found the teleportation talisman.

"Wait, don’t be reckless!" Qi Mu, afraid he’d really break his legs, grabbed his arm, trying to stop him.

But Chu Shuo had already chanted the spell.

A flash of golden light enveloped them, and they appeared directly in the main hall.

Just in time to hear Qi Hong say, "A’Yuan is my younger brother. If he stays, I’ll shamelessly remain at the Chu household. If he leaves, he will be the Regent of Qi Nation, commanding the nation’s army. I swear, I mean every word!"

In the hall, the Grand Lady and Chu Hanlin sat at the head of the room.

Madam Shen, Ye Siheng, and Nanli sat on the left, while the four sons of the Chu family were on the right.

Chu Shuo and Qi Mu’s sudden appearance shocked everyone.

Qi Hong, standing in the center, turned around, locking his cold gaze on Qi Mu.

"You’ve heard something you shouldn’t have..."

Whether A’Yuan stayed or left, his identity could not be revealed. If word got out, both A’Yuan and the entire Chu family would be in grave danger.

Qi Hong had to protect A’Yuan.

A menacing aura spread through the room.

Dark energy swirled around.

Chu Shuo had never seen such a sight before. Despite being closest to Qi Mu, he didn’t react quickly enough to shield her.